Fewer Americans Looking Forward to Retirement

Many Americans Just Keep Working

It used to be that retirement was something of a Golden stage for Americans. It meant a time where you could forget about working and dedicate yourself to your passion, hobby, or traveling without financial worries.

However, this case is happenning less and less for the average American. William Kilster, 63, from Colorado says that he sees retirement the way a woman tied to the tracks in one of those old movies sees a train. It's getting closer and closer, doesn't like it, but can't do anything about it.

"There's just not enough to retire with. It's completely frightening, to tell you the truth. I, like a lot of people, try not to think about it too much, which is actually a problem," says William.

The reason, as you might already know is that Americans have been losing purchasing power for decades and that traditional pensions are disappearing or being reduced. Since savings are closely related to income, the result is that more and more Americans are having less and less money saved for their retirement.

Susan McNamara, 62, from Boston, Massachusetts, says it's difficult it is for her to have any savings at all. "Over the years, all I've been able to do is pay the bills. Anything that's left over is used up when your car breaks down, or when the furnace breaks down. There is never anything left over, ever."

In addition, people retire at an age where they tend to need regular healthcare, which has gotten more expensive. They also typically expect to be needing even more healthcare in the short and medium term, especially if they just continue working.

What does this have to do with Mexico? As senior citizens find that they just don't have the purchasing power they expected, they tend to go to Mexico to get healthcare at a price that won't drain their finances so heavily. Some of them decide just to move to Mexico, where their level of income allows them to afford a much higher quality of life than it would in the United States.

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Robert Ervin is a freelancer who writes about healthcare, medical tourism, and living in Mexico.

If you're considering traveling to Mexico for healthcare or retiring in Mexico, you may want to  get yourself a copy of The English's Speaker's Guide to Doctors and Hospitals in Mexico in order to find a good doctor or hospital in the main towns and cities of Mexico, or The English Speaker's Guide to Medical Care in Mexico, to understand how the Mexican healthcare system works.

More Americans Moving to Mexico than Mexicans Moving to the US

There's even a TV show literally called Gringo in Mexico

The number of Americans that have emigrated to Mexico has been on the rise. Today, that number is twice as high as it was a decade ago.

There are 850,000 Americans legally living in Mexico. In addition, there are an unknown number of Americans that live permanently in Mexico, but never get a resident's visa. If you add Canadians, the second most numerous group of expats in Mexico, we could be talking about 1 million ex pats living permanently in Mexico. Again, the exact number is not known because many Americans don't get residents papers and are unaccounted for.

The number of Americans coming into Mexico is now bigger than the other way around. Despite what most people think, ex-pats in Mexico live all around the country, not just in famous resorts.

As to why Americans are coming to Mexico:

-It's close. You can always take a flight home or even drive back.
-It's cheap. Compared to the living prices in the US, living the good life ("la buena vida") in Mexico is rather inexpensive.
-Healthcare is actually affordable. One of the main reasons Americans come to Mexico is because they can't afford the healthcare they need anymore. Many times, they decide to stay.
-There are always ex-pat communities. You don't have to be the only gringo in town if you don't want to.
-Most brands are chains are found in Mexico. Because ex-pats are so numerous, companies have invested in making the most common products they are used to available in Mexico.
-Roads and Internet are great. Of course, unless you take a dirt road to some rural village, but some Americans come precisely for that.
-Mexico's culture. This is not the space to talk about Mexico's rich culture. Suffice to say, it is a culture famous worldwide.